How to clean your bike

Set aside 30 minutes this weekend to get down and dirty with your bike. If you do you will keep that new bike feeling for longer and enjoy a smoother ride with crisp gear shifting. Can’t beat it! So make sure before you head home today you pickup any of these bits you need from your local bike shop and then take a look at these easy instructions to clean your bike like the pro’s do, avoiding some of the common mistakes.

Everyone cleans their bike in a different way. In my experience, after much research and honing this is the most efficient way I have found. I can usually get my bike looking brand new in less than 25 minutes. You may want to print off these instructions for reference while you clean your bike. Let’s get started.

Clean bike chain

A clean bike chain will easily shift through the gears. If you have a dirty one then it will be slow to shift and will wear down your expensive drivetrain.

Put the bike in the lowest gear and pedal backwards running it through a damp cloth. Sometimes this stage may be enough to get the chain clean.

If its not then you will need to apply some degreaser onto the chain and allow it to sink in for 3-5 minutes. Don’t be overzealous as this is strong stuff. When the degreaser is applied rotate the chain to work it in.

Dampen a toothbrush or cloth and wipe the entire chain removing any degreaser and dirt making sure to get in between each chain link

Finally using a clean soft rag dry the chain massaging each link to make sure there is no degreaser left.

Rear sprockets and mech

Scrub the rear sprockets with hot water and a brush.

Again use a little degreaser if it is being really stubborn.

To get to the mud wedged deep inside the sprockets use a flat screwdriver or thin stick to gently poke it out. Remember dirt attracts more dirt so the more thorough you are at this stage the less likely it is you will need to clean it again in the near future.

Finally wipe using a dry cloth with a flossing motion to remove anything left. This stage is important as no degreaser should remain. The effort you are putting in now helps the gears shift more efficiently.

Moving on to the rear mech. Here you want to use a brush to remove any big chunks of dirt.

Then poke carefully with a thin screwdriver to remove any trapped dirt. Make sure you clean both sides of the rear mech.

Finally apply some degreaser and use an old toothbrush to remove anything that remains.

Front mech

Use a brush to get off any dirt from the front mech. A toothbrush can be useful here to get to any parts that are hard to reach.

Use a cloth to floss the front mech so as to get in-between the different parts.

Give the bike frame some love

Using a clean cloth work your way around the frame using hot water and a cloth. I tend not to use washing-up liquid as it often contains salt which can rust the bike if not washed away properly.

General bike clean

It’s worth quickly going over the rims with a clean cloth to get off any extra dirt that could get caught in the brake pads.

Brake pads are often ignored but are worth going over with the toothbrush. Also when doing your brake pads check they do not need replacing and that there are no metal bits stuck to them that need removing. Gently remove any stuck metal bits with a small screwdriver. If the brake block surface has become shiny, use some sandpaper to roughen it. Finally do the pedals and other parts of the bike with hot water and a cloth.

Polish for that extra special bike

By polishing the frame you prevent it picking up more dirt. Saddles can also benefit from some polish.

Final stage: Apply lube to moving parts

If all the components are dry then you can apply some lube.

Start off with the chain. Use a chain lubricant and apply sparingly on each link by moving the chain around. Allow to dry and then remove any excess with a cloth. This can feel counter intuitive as you have just lubed it but the only lube your bike needs is the one that sinks into the cracks. The excess simply gathers dirt. As a test the chain should feel only very slightly damp from the lube.

The same rules apply for the jockey wheels. They don’t need much as they gather most of it from the chain moving around.

Use your fingers to apply lube to the front and rear mech. Aim to apply lube to any pivots.

Move on to the handlebars. Lube should be added to the brake lever pivots and the gear shifters. As always use a cloth to wipe away any excess.

Finally apply a tiny bit of lube to exposed springs in the brakes (not the brake pad itself!) and any cables near the housing where they move around.
If anything else is squeaking use white lithium grease, work it in by moving the part around and wipe away any excess.

Common mistakes, further tips and discussion

If you want to supercharge your bike cleaning routine it is much easier with a bike stand. You can either buy one or make your own. There is a lot of debate (yes people debate about bike cleaning) as to whether to hose down your bike using a pressure hose as the pro’s do. The truth is a pressure hose can cause damage to the bearings and the frame. Therefore, someone that is not sure about what they are doing is best just using a sponge and water which improves the long term life of a bike.

If there is one further cleaning routine I would follow it is cleaning the brake and shift cables and lubricating them. For instructions on this see this bicycle tutor video.

I personally don’t recommend removing the bike chain for cleaning as it can cause damage. You can do a perfectly acceptable job with it remaining on the bike.

Get the gear!

The gear isn’t necessary but it can make the job a lot easier. If you do splash out on the cleaning gear then make sure you get the right stuff that is recommended. Usually it is slightly cheaper to buy online than walk into a shop.

25 Responses to How to clean your bike

What are you saying my bike is dirty – I can’t give you a before and after like that as a casual cyclist my bike is cleaned after every trip. Which is a 10 min job rather than the old days of half an hour once a month when it was ridden every day.

Craig – good to hear you clean after every ride! It saves you many hours of effort later.

Alex: That is right – WD-40 is unsuitable for fast moving parts – “Bicycle chains, on the other hand, are far too heavy and fast-moving for the lubricating power of WD-40 to have any effect at all. As a matter of fact, WD-40 will actually strip away any existing lubricant and leave your drivetrain dry – metal on metal. Basically, spraying this stuff on your chain is worse than using no lubricant at all!” From Bicycle Tutor

For the frame i use baby wipes – a tip recommended to me by a fellow roadie. Don’t ask me why or how, but baby wipes leave the frame gleaming. And to make it tragically even more technical, Tesco own seem to work best – all the others fall to bits. :o)

From Andreas: Great tip! Who would have thought baby wipes would be so useful in a bike clean!

Using an oily cloth on wheel rims – as in the picture – (if you have rim brakes – caliper, cantilever or other) can prove to be interesting the next time you ride the bike. I learned this the hard way as a ten year old. Ouch.

From Andreas: Adam, you are right that picture gives off totally the wrong impression! Will update with a better picture now

Another way to get the hidden grime off those machined wheel rims is just a paper towel and some ammonia. Just attended a class at the local LBS on brake and gear maintenance its amazing how much grime came off the rims of a bike that had just been built a few days ago.

Ah – your talking about toeing-in! Luckily its fairly simple to do. You just make sure that the front part of the brake pad is touching the rim first. This stops the annoying squealing sound. To do this just use an Allen key to loose the brake pad then move the washers into the correct position. Try searching on google for toeing in bicycle brakes.
Hope that helps and you no longer have to listen to horrible squealing sounds!

Very helpful tips you can use cheap but clean paint brushs on the front mech also the rear even use dare i say again paint brushs for all the drive system But PLEASE dont touch the brakes (disc or v type)
Regards
Chris.

I have been using a pressure washer for 6 years to clean my chain, gears and derailures with no bad effects. I am careful not to point the jet in to the sides of the bottom bracket and wheel bearings and have not had any bearing related problems. I would highly recommend the jet wash method as it is a quick and very thorough way to clean off accumulated oil and dirt. And you don’t need to use degreasers which means a thin layer of oil remains on the components afterwards! Just don’t point the jet in to the sides of bearings and you’ll be fine.
I would say it has extended the life of my chain etc. by years. I use my bike every day for work and cover about about 30 miles a week!

thanks for the guide – we do appreciate the time you take to write this!

i’m just getting back into cycling (commuting) and this recent snow/ice/sleet/rain/black ice/mud/salt has made itself known to my nice new Daily 1. so i’m buying a few essentials tomorrow and will have a shiny new bike over the weekend.

I have been trying to search for a good article that`s up to date on how to clean my road bike but no luck. I`m new to road biking and want to make sure i don`t end up with a rusty old frame etc. Is this good and up to date advise to follow?

Trackbacks/Pingbacks

[…] bicycle maintenance post I discussed the most important bit of maintenance you can do. Keeping your bike clean. The second most important is keeping it well lubricated. Yet, this is an area where many people […]

[…] 4. A clean bike will keep you from wiping grime all over your favorite pair of pants and extend the life of your bike. With a toothbrush and a rag, clean the pedals, brakes, tires, rims, frame, chain, cassette, derailleurs. Use as little water as possible and a bike specific cleaner. Use cleaning time as an inspection time—look for cracks and signs of wear. London Cyclist offers a good overview. […]